Early morning wreck kills highway construction worker

North Carolina Highway Patrol reported that one construction worker was killed and two others were injured after being struck by a driver along Interstate 40 on Sept. 19. According to NCHP, alcohol and speed did not appear to have been factors in the fatal accident. The 37-year-old driver who struck the three workers reportedly passed several field sobriety tests.

Troopers say the work accident happened while the driver was traveling through a work zone near exit 105 at about 2:30 a.m. After driving through traffic cones, the man reportedly struck three workers with his 2006 Ford pickup truck. A 43-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene, and the other two workers were transported to hospitals. One worker was treated for non-life-threatening injuries at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, and the other worker was taken to Grave Hospital in Morganton and quickly released.

Following the crash, an area of I-40 was shut down for the next six hours while troopers conducted an initial investigation. According to investigators, the driver may have been fatigued or dazed by the lights before losing control of his vehicle. The first sergeant believes that the accident was the first injury to take place in the construction zone. Crews were reportedly repaving the left lane in westbound I-40 in connection with a larger project that has been going on for three years.

Workers who are injured in similar construction accidents may be entitled to receive workers' compensation benefits. Regardless of the party at fault, filing a compensation claim within a timely manner relative to the accident may yield monetary aid to help with medical bills, loss of income and related expenses.

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